Blog Entry #7

Lesson Overview:

During TWC session 7, still on the topic of the Bio-Business Revolution, we moved from technology in Healthcare and biomedical sciences to technology in agri-biology, environmental life sciences and industrial biotechnology. Can technology in this area really provide us with a solution to the issue of sustainability? Can agricultural biotechnology really help us get more out of agricultural land with a lesser ecological footprint? We also discussed Biofuels – a possible way to a sustainable energy future, as well as the long argued GM VS Non-GM food argument.

Ideas & Observations:

I found Reading 7, “How to feed the world in 2015”, very interesting. With the increase in population growth, urbanization and incomes, the demand for food is likely to increase leading to a shortage of food. Although through positive growth in food production, we have managed to ensure an adequate supply of food globally and nationally, hunger and malnutrition, especially in least developed countries, has persisted. Why? The paper states that lack of income opportunities for the poor is one factor that has limited the effect of positive growth for the poor. The people in developing countries are stuck in a poverty cycle where they cannot afford to buy food even if there is food available. Poverty leads to hunger and hunger leads to poverty (because hungry people are vulnerable to diseases and lack of productivity at work). The solution offered is GDP growth originating from agriculture. Agriculture would appeal to the 75% of the people living in rural areas. Discrimination against this large portion of rural farmers, especially in growth policies, has to stop in order for the overall country’s economy to progress.

This brings me to a quote I read in “Hungry Corporations” by Helena Paul, “Food insecurity is highly complex and requires careful analysis of the problems and possible solutions. Issues such as poverty, lack of access to land, water, seed and food, poor infrastructure and distribution, unsustainable farming practices, national debt, wild fluctuations and inequalities in the world market are seen as more fundamental … Enough food is produced for everyone now, yet 800 million people are hungry, thus indicating that production levels are not the real problem.”

I agree with this statement to a large extent, hence I am unsure that advances in the biotech industry in the form of increasing crop yields is really the solution to combat world hunger. I feel that what is more important is to make food accessible to the poor by societal changes and political will (as mentioned in the reading).

“When we are able to grow the resources we need, we will finally be on the road to sustainability.”

Growing the resources we need would definitely put us on the road to sustainability. For example, biofuels could provide us with a sustainable source of energy. But the resources used to grow these resources are far from unlimited. In the situation of biofuels, the usage of land and water supplies is a key factor. One really needs to consider the opportunity costs of such technologies. Furthermore, there is significant environmental degradation through the increased uses of pesticides.

GM food and whether they should be pushed upon developing countries as humanitarian aid.

Firstly, I have to say that I have no problems with genetically modified crops. The ability of these crops to fight pests and diseases and produce increased yields is definitely essential to the pursuit for a sustainable solution to world hunger. Furthermore, as we are facing a future of severe climate changes, such technologies in the biotech industry could be vital for food security in the future. Learning how to make crops resistant to droughts or that can grow on arid land could indeed be beneficial. My concern, however, is the intentions of these biotech corporations. If they are more concerned about profits and returns, this may lead them to make irresponsible decisions based on their own greed. For example, pushing technologies that are not totally safe or healthy or beneficial to us. And since one of their key methods of pushing GM tech is by using their crops as humanitarian aid, developing countries that accept this aid will be the first ones to suffer as a result of the corporations' irresponsible actions.

“We strongly object that the image of the poor and hungry from our countries is being used by giant MNCs to push a technology that is neither safe, environmentally friendly, nor economically beneficial to us. We do not believe that such companies or gene technologies will help our farmers to produce the food that is needed in the 21^st century. On the contrary, we think it will destroy the diversity, the local knowledge and the sustainable agricultural systems that our farmers have developed for millennia and that it will undermine our capacity to feed ourselves.” – FAO statement by 24 delegates from 18 African Countries.

As for the IOPs, I found Cherie’s presentation on coral reefs and marine life really interesting. It is quite appalling to see how humans continue to blatantly destroy all forms of natural beauty and life forms around them. Hence, I am definitely happy to see that chemical technology has given birth to biorock, a way to increase and accelerate the growth of corals and hence boosting its survival.

Key takeaways:

Though according to Norman Burlog, biotechnology can and will help us meet the growing demand for food while preserving the environment for future generations to come, to complement this, we must also look at solving more fundamental problems like poverty and poor infrastructure especially in developing countries if we really want to solve the problem of world hunger.

In knowing that food is precious, we as people of developed countries should be more careful with food wastage. The little food that we waste could save the life of a hungry child in Africa dying of malnutrition.

Issues for further discussion:

I feel that the issues regarding GURTS (Genetic Use Restriction Technology)– the technology that Monsanto produced that restricted the use of their crops by causing second-generation seeds to be sterile could have been further discussed. There were many ethical concerns raised that hindered Monsanto from making this technology commercially available.

Are we blurring the lines between species by creating transgenic combinations? It is argued by some that the mixing of species is unnatural and immoral. With the birth of the Zorse (Zebra-horse), how soon will it be before we start mixing animal genes with human genes?

Personal Ratings:

8/10. Interesting topics raised with lots of room for discussion.